On the Edge of a Precipice

As I stood on the edge of the precipice and looked down, I felt as the Ancestors might have felt when gazing upon this vision for the very first time.  It wasn't anything that could be felt by seeing it on a big screen TV, nothing that could be absorbed by seeing it on a picture postcard that's hanging on a rack in the city.  It's nothing that can be felt without a person putting one foot in front of the other, straining over rocks and deadfall for over ten hours, and coming to rest at the top of the peak by sheer leg and willpower.

Looking out over miles upon miles of rugged mountain peaks, many that are not as high as the one underfoot, I see the sight that the First People might have seen, if they dared venture up into these ancient upheavals of the earth's crust.

It was not that it was a mere sight to behold, but the fact that to get there I had just spent ten hours getting to know the spirit of this mountain.  Yes, there are much bigger mountains and many more knee-shaking precipices (precipie?), but from this day forward I knew that I would look upon this intersection of latitude and longitude, as a very special place.

I did not drive an automobile to the top, buy a t-shirt, and drive back down jumping in and out of the car for snapshots, all in the span of ninety minutes while giving nothing up except twenty dollars admission and 6 gallons worth of liquid air pollution.  No...one cannot truly feel and be one with the spirit of the ancient peak if they are separated from the Earth by rubber and concrete and are housed in a climate controlled environment the entire time.  It must be experienced by one physical step at a time. to feel the sun upon your back as you lift and place and lift and place your feet on the body of the mountain.  You must feel it breathe as the trees sway one way and then the other, with Nature's rhythm.  You must hear it speak as the Jays accompany you on parts of your trek, sqwawking overhead, and the Picas chatter while skittering to and from their burrows in the rocks.  You become one with Her as the sweat from your brow falls to mix with the surface of Her skin.  All the while, you slowly become one with Her while gaining more insight on, and more respect for, this living, breathing being we call Earth. 

The Paper Dragon

by DPR

Torches burning left and right,
smell of Pinion through the night.
Dragon guards the crystal ball,
that holds the dreams of one and all.

Dare to step into the lair
and thee will find it waiting there.
Prepared to rip thy flesh from bone,
and leave thee in a heap…alone.

What hope exists, to gaze into
that glass that keeps your soul from you?
The soul that is thy destiny?
The soul that is the heart of thee!

With ease you might just turn away
to plunder through another day.
To let thy fear consume thyself
and keep your life upon the shelf.

So few with choose the other way.
Not to run…but turn, and stay.
To walk with head held high and free
towards open-ended destiny.

 Throughout your life you’ve felt the drain
and now your “self” you wish to claim.
“You’ll never win!” the voices shout.
But you step forth….your fate in doubt.

 The crowd moves back to let you through,
while secretly they want it too.
They heave a sigh, a heavy groan
but stay within their comfort zone.

 You stride ahead alone towards doom,
when just beyond, you see a room.
No movement sensed, no sounds of yet,
But still you feel a drip of sweat.

 Creeping forth, you take a peek.
The air around you starts to reek.
The smell of Fear, you know its game.
The creature’s here…you see the flame.

 The dragon roars, and fire he spits…
Your sweat now runs in rivulets.
The heat is strong, the noise intense.
You tell yourself you’ve lost all sense.

But still you step, though slower now.
You’ve gone this far…and wonder how.
Besides by Fear, you’ve not been touched.
You see the ball that the talons clutch.

 Between those claws…an arc of light.
Inside the ball…your soul, you sight.
Something wells inside your heart,
you vow you shall not be apart.

 Moving forward, now you run.
Knowing this can’t be undone.
You’ve seen the light, the other side,
and now there’s no place left to hide.

 So armed with truth and strength of will
you move in close…to die…or kill.
When all at once, the globe floats free
from the claws of captivity.

 It hovers close, this crystal sphere,
to take you in…and out of here.
You raise a doubtful hand aloft,
to touch the ball with light so soft.

When suddenly the torches light
is far below, as you take flight.
The glow surrounds you, holding fast,
as you are brought to earth, at last.

The light goes out, but not apart.
It’s still inside your beating heart.
And there it stays forever bright,
to guide you through the dark of night.

By day, before, you’ve never seen
a sky so blue, nor earth so green.
And though the rain comes sometimes through,
the master of your life is you.

And of the dragon roaring loud?
He still tends to his frightened crowd,
with noise and flame, but ne’er a fight
to keep them cowering in the night….

until the time another’s faith
steps forth against the paper wraithe….